The Jews are the curse of my country. They keep my people poor and in their clutches. In every small village in Germany sits a dirty Jew, like a spider drawing the people into the web of usury. He lends money to the small farmers on the security of their land, and so gradually acquires control of everything. The Jews are the parasites of my Empire.
Wilhelm II (German Emperor) quoted in “Wilhelm II: Emperor and exile, 1900-1941” by Lamar Cecil, 1989